School principal and a cool dad.

19 Llamas Who Get How You Feel After Vacation

You just got back from vacation, and it’s your first day back at work. You’re numb. Everything seems pointless. People say “Happy Monday!” and all you can think is:

If anyone knows how you feel, it’s a pack of llamas. (Or alpacas. We’re using both, because they’re both certified to help you get over post-vacation blues.) Llamas and their alpaca friends have experienced the ups and downs of vacation and its aftermath, and they can truly understand the struggle of getting back to the routine.

So if you just got back from a trip—or if you could use a pick-me-up, or even if you just llike llamas a llot—here are some empathetic llamas to help you through the journey of getting back from your journey. Just try not to actually spit on your coworkers. Tempting as it is, it’ll make things harder in the long run.

The first thing you usually face when you get back—aside from the uncontrollable urge to spit—is kind of like mourning. You waited for months for that vacation, and while you were on your trip, you were free.

You were on top of the world.

You could do anything at all, no matter how crazy it seemed.

But in a snap, it was gone. Packing, travel, jetlag. You had to book it to make it back to a place you don’t even really want to be.

So here you are, in the office once again. Alarm clocks, small talk around the coffee pot, busy work. The tedium and monotony of the daily grind.

Just the thought of looking at the millions of emails that piled up while you were away is like the idea of being force-fed reject leftovers.

Everything feels empty. You can’t find your drive. You’d do anything to dodge that next meeting.

You remember that thing you were sure you’d be more motivated to do once you got back. Nope. Nuh-uh. I’m out.

Did you just nod off at your desk?

The millionth person just asked you how your trip was, and you got nostalgic and almost shed a tear, or maybe just had to hold back your rage at being told “Welcome back!” It’s official: you might actually be going insane.

At this point, you’re tempted to make a run for it and never look back.

But don’t despair. You just have to get back into the right mindset. Let yourself wallow in your post-vacation blues for a bit. Zone out, feel grumpy, eat your favorite snacks.

But then, kick yourself back into action. You can only heave a heavy sigh every time you look at a picture of your vacation spot so many times before you lose it. So absorb the joyous memories of your trip, and then ease back into your regular routine. Set yourself mini deadlines, give yourself rewards, read lists of tips for getting over the post-vacation blues. And after a few days of feeling weird about being back, you’ll start getting back in sync.

And really, it’s not all bad. You have your friends, and maybe you even like some of your coworkers. Isn’t it kind of nice to rejoin the pack?

Once you get used to your daily tasks and remind yourself there are people you like, you’ll find that you’ve hit your stride. It’s really not so bad, once you get into the groove.

It may feel like a big stretch. But once you get into it, you’ll realize you were thirsty for the rewards of your life at home.

In no time, even when you’re getting that torrent of emails and piles of new projects, you will no longer be phased. After you’ve soaked up the glory of your vacay and re-acclimated to your normal environment, you’ll find yourself ready to take on anything.